Aberdeen restaurant faces second fine for illegal staff

A restaurant is facing its second large fine in 16 months after three men were caught working there illegally.

The men were found by UK Border Agency officers at the Jewel in the Crown in Crown Street, Aberdeen, on Friday.

A Bangladeshi man and a Nepalese man were held pending removal from the UK, while steps are being taken to remove a second Bangladeshi citizen.

The same restaurant was fined £20,000 after four illegal workers were caught there in September 2010.

In the latest case, the Jewel in the Crown faces a fine of to £30,000 if it fails to provide evidence that legally required checks were carried out before the workers were given employment.

Adam Scarcliffe, assistant director of the UK Border Agency in Scotland, said: "The UK Border Agency is working constantly to stamp down on people who are in the country illegally and the businesses which employ them.

"Employing illegal workers undercuts honest businesses and defrauds the public purse.

"There is no excuse for using illegal labour, and if people ignore our immigration laws, we will find them and remove them from the country."

Last month, several Chinese nationals were found hiding in a kitchen loft in Motherwell during a UK Border Agency raid.

The illegal workers were caught at the Hup Lee Restaurant.

In 2010, the Hup Lee was fined £75,000 and closed for three months for employing 10 illegal workers.